Our Sangha is supported by dana - donations given from the heart. These remain difficult times for many, but if you can afford to contribute, simply click here, or on the donate button at the bottom of the page.

A large part of your tax deductible donation goes to help the Thich Nhat Hanh Foundation (which is all that is supporting our monks and nuns in monasteries around the world, whose income from retreats largely disappeared during the pandemic and is only now slowly rebuilding. Many buildings are in urgent need of renovation or replacement, including the sisters’ residence at Blue Cliff, and Lower Hamlet at Plum Village which was just hit by a terrible fire). Your generosity also helps support the Vihara (the Sri Lankan monastery that hosts our in-person meetings in DC), and the small lending library we have; it also enables us to offer dana to visiting dharma teachers. And thanks to one anonymous offering, we also have funds available to subsidize sangha members who want to attend a retreat, and need some financial help to do so.

Here is how the Thich Nat Hanh Foundation writes about the practice of giving, or dana:

“Giving (dana) is an essential Buddhist practice. It is about generosity and openness, our capacity to embrace others with our compassion and love. The practice of dana brings a lot of happiness when we know how to do it in the spirit of wisdom, with the understanding of interbeing.

“We don’t have to give $10,000 or even $10; instead we can offer a smile or a loving, compassionate gaze. We can give the gift of our calm, concentrated presence to help someone who is fearful or anxious. We can make an offering of our time and energy and work with the homeless, or with those who are prisoners or are addicted to different substances, or to work on helping the environment. We have plenty of gifts to offer; we are far wealthier than we may imagine.”